Ensuring a patient follows a medication or dosage regime continues to be problematic in the medical industry. Previous efforts directed toward compliance focused on incorporating reminders into various medicinal containers. For example, U.S. patent application publication 2007/0016443 to Wachman et al. titled “Medication Compliance Systems, Methods and Devices with Configurable and Adaptable Escalation Engine”, filed Jul. 6, 2006, describes incorporating electronics into a container cap where the electronics can provide compliance feedback to a patient or to remote healthcare providers. Interestingly, the disclosed effort and other known efforts focus on specific containers; bottles, vials, boxes, or blister packs for example, rather than a single container, a bag for example, suitable for all types of pharmaceuticals. Further, the known art fails to address issues that arise from bag-like containers having flexible seals, which render detection of an open or close event very difficult.
U.S. patent application publication 2002/00104848 to Burrows et al. titled “Pharmaceutical Container Having Signaling Means and Associated Method of Use”, filed Feb. 5, 2001, describes a use of a sensor to determine the closed position of a cap. Contemplated containers transmit data with a base station. Although Burrows presents useful approaches for tracking a patient's compliance with a schedule, Burrows requires container-specific implementations for each type of medicine container. In the Burrows example, the disclosed technique is only applicable to rigid container openings.
U.S. patent application publication 2007/0024465 to Howell et al. titled “Portable Container with Speaker Attached”, filed Jul. 22, 2006, describes a bottle having a speaker capable of providing audio signals to remind patients to take substances in the bottle. Howell references that some embodiments include storing a bottle in a bag, but fails to address issues relating detecting when a flexible seal of the bag is opened or closed.
Yet another example includes U.S. patent application publication 2009/0294521 to de la Huerga titled “Interactive Medication Container”, filed May 8, 2009. The de la Huerga disclosure describes interactive medication containers that inform a patient or pharmacist about compliance with dosage requirements. Even though de la Huerga contemplates interactive systems for bottles, boxes, or blister packs, de la Huerga also fails to address problems arising from a bag-like container having a flexible opening. The disclosed de la Huerga containers also comprise rigid caps or containers.
Additional examples include U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,295,890 and 7,844,361 both to Jean-Peirre and titled “Prescription Drug Compliance Monitoring System”, filed Sep. 25, 2003 and Oct. 30, 2007, respectively. In the Jean-Pierre approach medical dispensers alert patients take medication and gathers compliance data. The dispensers also have rigid openings.
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Unless the context dictates the contrary, all ranges set forth herein should be interpreted as being inclusive of their endpoints and open-ended ranges should be interpreted to include only commercially practical values. Similarly, all lists of values should be considered as inclusive of intermediate values unless the context indicates the contrary.
Thus, there is still a need for bag containers having non-rigid openings capable of providing schedule or compliance feedback.